Here are 5 big takeaways from Sunday’s Patriots-Commanders game
A week after their defeat against the Miami Dolphins, the New England Patriots took on the Washington Commanders at Gillette Stadium on Sunday.
It was a competitive game throughout, though not for any significant level of skill from either team. Ultimately, Washington prevailed after a late-game drive from the Patriots ended in a turnover with less than two minutes to go, finalizing their victory in a 20-17 scoreline.
But even amidst their continued struggles, the Patriots still showed their class as an organization and care for the community. Before Sunday’s game, the team held a tribute to honor the victims of the recent shooting in Lewiston, Maine.
Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud believes the dramatic victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers could be the spark for momentum.
The Houston Texans’ 39-37 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 9 wasn’t simply their fourth victory of the year. The inter-conference encounter checked sundry boxes for a rebuilding team.
Houston played through injuries, rallied from deficits, had their rookie quarterback lead a game-winning drive.
C.J. Stroud hit receiver Tank Dell for a 15-yard touchdown to give the Texans the lead with six seconds remaining. After Houston secured their fourth win of the year, Stroud opined on what the win could do for the team.
“I think it’s something that can get us rolling,” said Stroud. “Momentum is everything in this league and in the game of football. We’ve got to ride this momentum and work really hard in practice this week. We weren’t perfect out there, though. We’re never going to be perfect, but we’ve got to clean up some things, got to run the ball a little better.”
The Texans were disastrous on the ground with 17 carries for 53 yards. Stroud’s arm was the conduit for success with 470 yards and five touchdowns.
“It’s a big-time win for us, and November and December is when you want to be playing your best ball,” Stroud said. “So, now we just want to upscale, uptrend and trailblaze into the playoffs, and, hopefully, get a chance to win the division and everything like that. We’ve got a lot of work to put in, though.”
The Texans’ next test is against the Cincinnati Bengals, who dusted the Buffalo Bills 24-18 on Sunday Night Football.
How do the Saints fit into the NFL playoff picture after Week 9’s games? If the postseason started today, these would be the matchups:
How do the New Orleans Saints fit into the NFL playoff picture after Week 9’s games? They’re suddenly in control of the NFC South with the only winning record in the division, and a very winnable schedule is laid out ahead of them. All Dennis Allen’s team needs to do is win the games they ought to and compete hard against the few challenging matchups remaining. But we’ve seen before that’s easier said than done.
Things could change in a hurry, but if the postseason started today, these would be the seedings and matchups in the NFC and AFC:
NFL power rankings, Week 10: Eagles and Chiefs soar as Cowboys, Bills, and Dolphins get exposed. But where do the Saints clock in?
Fans watched a preview for several possible playoff matchups during Week 9’s NFL games, with Super Bowl contenders like the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs standing tall while their rivals got exposed — the Dallas Cowboys and Miami Dolphins are in fact not ready for prime time, and the Buffalo Bills may not be, either.
But where do the New Orleans Saints clock in after their defense cleaned up its own mess in a too-close win over the lowly Chicago Bears? Let’s break it all down with our NFL power rankings going into Week 10:
Thoughts and takeaways about the Bengals after the game against the Bills.
The Cincinnati Bengals moved to 5-3 on the season with Sunday night’s 24-18 win Buffalo Bills.
There, the Bengals hosted what felt like it could be another preview of a playoff game if all goes according to plan for both teams.
Along the way, onlookers seemed to learn plenty about how the Joe Burrow-led offense will keep evolving as the season continues. Plus, how the defense handles encountering another elite quarterback in a conference stacked with them.
Here’s a look at some quick takeaways for the team as they move forward toward a Week 10 AFC encounter with the Houston Texans.
Few matchups generate the hype levels of the Cincinnati Bengals and Buffalo Bills facing off lately.
The two parties, headed up by Joe Burrow and Josh Allen, tend to put on great, offensive-minded games as would-be Super Bowl contenders in the AFC and that was true enough during Sunday night’s primetime showdown, too.
There, Joe Burrow and the Bengals offense took a 21-7 lead into halftime en route to a 24-18 final.
Here’s a look at the best instant reactions from fans and media alike coming out of the game before the Bengals start to think about playing Houston next weekend.
Instant analysis after Bills vs. Bengals in Week 9.
The Cincinnati Bengals, in what is becoming an increasingly common matchup, hosted the Buffalo Bills on the Week 9 edition of “Sunday Night Football” and won, 24-18.
That winning — both over the Bills and in general — is becoming common too, as that’s fourth straight for a Bengals team no longer worried about a certain calf injury.
Joe Burrow and the Bengals offense exploded out of the gates again after entering winners in three straight, assuming a 21-7 halftime advantage.
Considering the massive playoff implications at stake in the AFC in this one, every drive mattered greatly in front of the primetime audience.
Here’s a look at some numbers and details to know from right after the game went final.
The Raiders are so much happier without Josh McDaniels.
The more time passes, the more it becomes clear the Las Vegas Raiders rid themselves of Josh McDaniels like a ship sheds a rusty anchor. This is a guy who couldn’t resist defending his old team in what might have been one of the most critical moments of his Raiders coaching career.
With Davante Adams seeming so carefree after the Raiders fired McDaniels, it looked like the veteran coach was indeed throwing Las Vegas’s vibes off. We can’t deny that assertion after watching the Raiders — led by interim head coach Antonio Pierce — systematically dismantle the New York Giants in a 30-6 win on Sunday. From the jump, the Raiders played a complete game in all three phases, completely outclassing an overmatched Giants squad.
So, I now ask: How bad of a coach was McDaniels? Look at this elated locker room smoking victory cigars for a regular-season win, folks. I mean, my goodness!
NFL fans also noticed the massive disparity in Raiders players’ despair and happiness between Pierce and McDaniels as their coach. They couldn’t help but laugh at McDaniels’ expense when they saw Las Vegas break out cigars for an early November win.
They’re usually way ahead of the curve, processing and dropping dimes all over the field like veteran superstars. Pro football lore does not feature many youthful signal-callers who are advanced at the position from the jump. We can safely add C.J. Stroud to the shortlist of the greatest rookie quarterbacks ever. Heck, if I’m being candid, he has a strong case as the NFL’s best rookie passer of all time.
Most NFL teams who draft quarterbacks near the top of the first round hope their prospect starts showing meaningful flashes by Year 2 or Year 3. They’re more than willing to be patient to see a picture-perfect effort from the ideal face of their franchise. It’s a reasonable thought process because quarterback is obviously hard to play, and there’s so much to learn — on the fly and in the film room.
The Texans are lucky because they didn’t have to wait on the No. 2 overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft.
From the jump, Stroud has shown glimpses that he’s not only a serviceable starter but also a player with the potential to be one of the faces of the league. The young man isn’t even halfway through his rookie campaign and already has 14 touchdown passes and over 2,200 yards passing. He’s a gunner, a leader who elevates his teammates with his presence. These Texans have no business being 4-4, but Stroud won’t let them fade. As evidenced by his 40-second game-winning touchdown drive, he’s someone who is never shy of a clutch moment, too.
There will likely be more to come, but Stroud’s 470-yard, five-touchdown game against Tampa Bay in a 39-37 win will be remembered as one of the finest quarterback outings all year. Stroud was so marvelous against a Todd Bowles defense laden with multiple Super Bowl 55-winning veterans that it was hard to distinguish whether he was a seasoned 10-year professional or a guy making his eighth start in the NFL.
That’s just how locked-in he looked.
Take a gander at this passing chart from Next Gen Stats. It’s unbelievable every time I look at it because it reminds me so much of all the other AFC heavyweights like Mahomes, Burrow, and Josh Allen:
Credit: Next Gen Stats
In the coming weeks, we’ll thoughtfully decide on the NFL’s most outstanding rookie quarterback ever. (That’s because Stroud has likely already locked up 2023 Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.)
While there will be some who cape for Cam Newton and people who vouch for Justin Herbert, among others, I’m here to tell you that that conversation starts and ends with Stroud. With all due respect, he’s simply better. Beyond the raw numbers, we have never seen a first-year NFL passer look this beyond his years. Stroud is an impeccably mature talent, someone who is taking a mediocre Texans squad and thrusting it into relevance almost singlehandedly.
I’ve never seen anything like it, and I can’t wait to see what he has in store for what looks like an incandescent future.
In For The Win‘s Week 9 NFL Awards, we’ve got a journeyman quarterback endearing himself to pro football lovers everywhere. Meanwhile, Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys fans were probably the only ones who didn’t enjoy an NFC East instant classic.
